Inspired by late father, supported by Class IV worker mom, Renuka Singh Thakur rips by way of Australia in Birmingham

Renuka Singh Thakur’s WhatsApp show image is of a tattoo the place a father is enjoying together with his daughter. Renuka had inked it in reminiscence of her late father, who handed away in 1999. Kehar Singh Thakur, who used to work within the Himachal Pradesh irrigation and public well being division in Rohru, died when Renuka was solely three.

“Whatever little she has achieved is dedicated to her father,” says Pawan Sen, coach of the Himachal Pradesh Women’s cricket crew. Before going to Birmingham for the Commonwealth Games, Renuka had a protracted chat along with her childhood coach. Sen’s solely recommendation to her was to do properly within the first match.

“Maine usko bas itna kaha ki pehle match mein aisa perform karna ki saare match mey khelne ka mauka mila (Perform well in the first match so that you get to play all the matches in the tournament),” Sen advised Indian Express from Dharamshala.

Brilliant with the ball from #WorkforceIndia 💥🔥

Renuka Thakur picks up her fourth wicket.

Australia are 4 down for 34 runs.

Live – https://t.co/cuQZ7NHmpB #AUSvIND #B2022 pic.twitter.com/XvJYPVTBCR

— BCCI Women (@BCCIWomen) July 29, 2022

“When she was picked for the 50-over World Cup, she didn’t get to play a single game. She wanted to prove herself to the team management that she deserves a long rope; against Sri Lanka, she did really well in both the T20Is and the ODIs, and now in the first match, she’s destroyed Australia’s top order. A solid effort indeed,” mentioned Sen, who has skilled Renuka for the previous 14 years.

The 26-year-old seamer ran by way of Australia’s prime 4 in India’s Group A opener at Edgbaston, eradicating Alyssa Healy (0), Beth Mooney (10), captain Meg Lanning (8) and Tahlia McGrath (14) in a powerful spell of 4-0-18-4. Healy and Mooney have been dismissed on good size deliveries and Lanning threw away her wicket to a shortish, large one however the wicket which happy Sen probably the most was of McGrath.

“Inswing uska asli weapon hai, inswinging yorker kaafi achha daalti hai, best hai country mein (Inswing is her real weapon and she has the best inswinging yorker in the country),” mentioned Sen.

Mother and brother’s sacrifice

If not for her mom, Renuka would by no means have performed cricket. Renuka’s mom Sunita joined the irrigation and public well being division as a category IV worker in 2000, and as a teen, Renuka confirmed curiosity in enjoying cricket on the village floor with elder brother Vinod.

“My husband cherished cricket and had named our elder son Vinod after his favorite cricketer Vinod Kambli. When he died resulting from an sickness, it was a troublesome time for our household as Renuka was simply three years previous. While I obtained the job as a category IV worker instead of my husband, it additionally meant that I’d spend the day at Rohru.

“Renuka started playing with her brother Vinod at the village ground and to see her claim all these wickets for India in the opening game against Australia is due to all the hard work by her all these years. She has proved that she is no less than Vinod Kambli for all of us,” an emotional Sunita advised this paper from Rohru in Shimla district.

Renuka Singh celebrates after dismissing Beth Mooney of Australia within the opening match of the Birmingham Commonwealth Games. (Photo: ICC)

At the age of 14, for the primary time, Renuka moved out from her village Parsa close to Rohru to the Himachal Pradesh Cricket Association academy.

“HPCA started a girls residential cricket academy in Kangra in 2009. She was very fit as compared to other girls. Maybe that came from the fact that she came from Rohru, a town at a height of around 1600m. As she was always interested in being a fast bowler, we initially made her run cross country twice a week to build her stamina,” mentioned Sen.

Sunita supported Renuka’s dream. But within the course of, she needed to sacrifice her son’s dream. “Vinod was a good cricketer, too. But her mother could not afford it. You know how costly cricket is. So she decided to support Renuka, and it worked out well for the family,” mentioned Sen.

Renuka’s brother mentioned that she would journey with him to neighbouring villages to play video games. “Renuka would at all times ask for the ball when she would accompany us to the village floor and later when she began enjoying with us, she was the one woman enjoying the morning and night matches. Sometimes, we might journey to close by villages and would get late however she could be joyful that she helped the crew win. She took two wickets in a single native village league match and smashed a few enormous sixes.

“That’s when my uncle Bhupinder Singh Thakur asked her to give trials for the HPCA Academy in Dharamshala in 2009 and took her for the trials,” shared Vinod, who is 2 years elder to Renuka.

Sen says his ward is not going to be happy along with her efficiency after she was given the chilly shoulder by the selectors in 2019.

“It is her nature. In the 2018-19 domestic One Day League, she took 21 wickets but was not picked for India. She was disappointed and that changed something in her. She is never satisfied with her performance. She always tries to improve in the next match,” mentioned Sen.